Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Barack Obama met the Chinese premier, Wen Jiabao, in the basic today, in talks that were accepted to focus on barter and added bread-and-butter disagreements.

Speaking afore the two men met, Obama said that the American accord with China was deepening to awning all-embracing affairs such as altitude change and security.

Wen said: "We are absolutely on the bend of affective advanced with this relationship."

But barter and bread-and-butter disputes arose in Obama's collective columnist accident with the Chinese president, Hu Jintao, bygone and the two governments are accepted to analyze them added absolutely today.

US admiral had played bottomward expectations of affecting breakthroughs in the talks, although there were signs of beforehand on altitude change advanced of abutting month's Copenhagen summit.

Some analysts appropriate that the absolute collective account issued by the two governments was added able than the columnist accident had suggested.

Bonnie Glaser, an able on China at the Centre for Strategic and All-embracing Studies in Washington, told Associated Columnist the account underscored that "the two countries accept a lot of accepted interests, but it charcoal to be apparent whether they can co-operate to beforehand them".

Obama fabricated apparent in his columnist accident with Hu bygone that he was anxious about China's bill policy. The US wants Beijing to acquiesce the renminbi to appreciate.

Last anniversary there were hints of a accessible acceleration in its value, admitting not in the abbreviate term, but admiral accept back played bottomward such prospects.

He Yafei, the agent adopted minister, told a columnist conference afterwards the collective actualization that advancement a abiding bill during the banking crisis "not alone helped the all-around abridgement but additionally the adherence of the world's banking markets".

With exports accepting collapsed for a 12th ages in a row – admitting at a decelerating clip – Beijing is apprenticed to be cautious.

"Any action changes by China, including on the barter rate, will be based on its appraisal of its own interests, not on alien pressure," said Jin Canrong, an able on China-US ties at Renmin University in Beijing.

Wen is accepted to highlight Chinese acrimony at US barter tariffs – referred to advisedly by Hu bygone – and apropos over US government spending. In March, Wen said about that he afraid about China's all-inclusive US assets.

China has accumulated $2.27tn of adopted barter affluence and analysts accept about two-thirds of that is invested in dollar-denominated assets, authoritative it calmly the more good adopted lender to the US.

Obama will appointment a amplitude of the Great Wall abreast the basic after today, afore aerial to South Korea – area barter will additionally be aerial on the agenda. Seoul is blame adamantine for beforehand on a chargeless barter agreement.

Obama is additionally accepted to altercate North Korea's nuclear programme back he meets Admiral Lee Myung-bak. The US has agreed to accelerate its appropriate envoy, Stephen Bosworth, to Pyongyang for talks.

North Korea bass bottomward adverse address yesterday, adage in an official bi-weekly that it capital more good ties with the South.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

MEXICO CITY/SAN SALVADOR: More than 100 people were killed as heavy rains set off mudslides and caused flooding in El Salvador, rescue workers said.

The rainfall, which came amid a cold front and the remainders of Caribbean Hurricane Ida, caused havoc in other parts of the region including southern Mexico, where more than 200,000 people were affected.

More than 60 people died in the Salvadoran capital, San Salvador, with another 60 missing late Sunday.

More than 40 residents of the town of San Vicente and the surrounding areas around the base of the Chinchontepec volcano perished in mudslides, said Salvadoran Interior Minister Humberto Centeno. One mudslide covered an area of eight kilometres, damaging several towns, he said.

More than 300 houses were destroyed in San Vicente, and streets and bridges in the region had collapsed.

Some parts of the region were still cut off by flooding. The hurricane had grown to a category 2 storm Sunday. It slid along Mexico's Caribbean coast and past the resort city of Cancun on the Yucatan peninsula, where officials reported little damage late Sunday.

Meteorologists at the US National Hurricane Centre in Miami forecast that Ida would continue into the Gulf of Mexico with landfall looming along the US Gulf Coast.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

WASHINGTON: Republicans surged to victory in two governors' races on Tuesday, wresting control from Democrats and delivering a blow to President Barack Obama heading into next year's congressional elections.

The victories in Virginia and New Jersey were triumphs for a Republican Party looking to rebuild after being booted from power in national elections in 2006 and 2008.

In both states, Republicans won the votes of independents who had been crucial to Obama's victory last year.

In the traditionally Democratic state of New Jersey, Gov. Jon Corzine, a billionaire former Wall Street executive, was defeated by Republican Chris Christie.

In the other race, Bob McDonnell won a resounding victory over R. Creigh Deeds in Virginia, a state that was once a Republican stronghold but elected Democrats in the last two gubernatorial races and also backed Obama last year.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

New Delhi: At least 10 people were killed and 20 injured when the Delhi-bound Goa Express rammed into the stationary Mewar Express near Mathura early on Wednesday morning.

The Goa Express hit the Mewar Express from behind at around 0445 hours IST, Rajesh Vajpayee, CPRO North-Central Railway said. An unreserved compartment of the Mewar Express was damaged.

Most passengers who were trapped in the damaged coach have been rescued. However, the death toll is likely to go up.

Railway authorities used gas cutters to extricate trapped passengers from the damaged coach. The injured have been rushed to various hospitals in Mathura, Aligarh and Agra.“Driver changed tracks in the last minute and crashed into the other train,” said an eyewitness. While another eyewitness recalled how the train felt a “massive impact and those in the upper berth fell down”.

Railway officials and Army personnel have reached the accident spot and rescue operation is going on. Some of the passengers from the two trains have also joined in the rescue operations.

Meanwhile, a rescue worker said, “We first rescued the children. There were many women passengers. No specific equipments were given to us by the administration. We managed on our own with hammers.”

Divisional Railway Manager, Agra, R D Tripathi, who was at the spot, said prima facie the train driver of the Goa Express was at fault.

Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered an inquiry into the mishap. She also said that compensation of Rs 5 lakh will be given to the victims' relatives.

Congress MP Mohammad Azharuddin, who was travelling in the Mathura train route, said, “I was in the Tamil Nadu Express, which was also plying on the same route. When I woke up at 8:30 am, I realised that that my train has not reached the Nizamuddin railway station. Railway Ministry should minimise train accidents.”